


The Golden Headdress

by I_am_not_screaming_you_are_77



Category: Sleepless Domain (Webcomic)
Genre: Gen, I'm not sure what to put just yet, It'll get clear as it goes on, Not Romance, slow start
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-30
Updated: 2018-09-10
Packaged: 2019-06-18 16:37:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15490116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_am_not_screaming_you_are_77/pseuds/I_am_not_screaming_you_are_77
Summary: Yay, onto the second chapter! This is really fun to write, but is it OK if I keep updating on Mondays? It just sets up a good deadline for me.





	1. Walking Home

Brilliant sunshine gleamed with an unpleasant, showy sparkle over the crowded terraced houses making up the lonely way home. Tessa rose her left arm to shield her eyes from the later afternoon light, the type that always gets in your eyes if you even remotely glance towards it. Yet another mundane annoyance that plagued the earlier hours of the ordinary student day - more sun precisely around the time she would get home on the train.

She turned her gaze to the various posters hung up around the path, some that had fallen to the ground with time, faded colours stained in the mud. The small, crumpled remnants of an Alchemical Air poster she had torn down the previous week had been replaced with a similar design, featuring Outrageous Lime of all people. Sylvia had said Team Outrageous was popular, but Tessa was certain she would still be peeved about her spot being overtaken by a more popular idol... She had helped out Undine a few nights ago with a monster though, so tearing down this print would be conflicting. Ultimately, she left it to reside there. They would probably easily replace it with another one anyway, sheet after sheet, even after Lime puts down her bat. Their fame exceeded and would continue to exceed that of Team Alchemical, that was for sure.

Tessa thought over to Future's Promise, where Undine still resided. She would probably be in chemistry right now, one of the subjects they had abhorred as younger children, but now -well, not now, about a week ago - treated with a mundane begrudging similar to that of most of adolescence. She wondered how she was doing over there, as they hadn't spoken since the day before Tessa's transfer. They did live relatively close, so they should probably try and make time for it. Was she lonely over there too? Was she being bullied or shunned by other students? Was she at least with a partner, or maybe a brand new team? Hopefully she was at least alright.

A secondary glint of light caught her eye from another angle, causing Tessa to wince in annoyance. She cautiously turned her head, to see it coming off a small object, just about head-height, hanging on the wall of an alleyway. Tessa looked both ways, empty as the usual workday afternoon, before wandering over and taking a closer inspection of it.

On the left side of the cold, stone alleyway which lead deeper into the niches of town, just above Tessa's head, was a small, fabric duplicate of the old headdress of her uniform. Iridescent light glimmered brightly off the shimmering plastic imitating the golden Mercury's wings, as the headband hung limply from a crack in the concrete. Someone was probably getting rid of old merchandise, now that Alchemical Aether couldn't protect the kids from the monsters that came out at night.

Tessa observed it quietly, before carefully pulling it out and pocketing it in her bag, to be disposed of at home. It felt surprisingly similar to that of the real thing, and was about the correct sort of size, too. Cheap costumes for younger or unlucky, dreamer girls weren't often this sort of quality. Quality or not, Tessa turned around and made her way back home. Dinner would probably be soon, and she didn't want her parents worrying about her. She quietly paced off to the house, thinking nothing more of it until later.


	2. Iridescence

Tessa walked into her bedroom, turned on the lights, and slumped over to her old wooden desk. She pulled out her maths homework, already half done on the train, and got to work. Brackets were expanded and contracted as necessary, and standard form calculations were done rather easily. It was mostly just busy work, nothing really new, but it had to be done at some point. Within half an hour, Tessa's homework was done. She checked over her workings, concluded them fine, and replaced it in her bag.

All her homework done, Tessa was left with a very boring few hours left. She had three options at this point: read another old copy of Mahou Robo (it had been on hiatus for who knows how long at this point), talk with her parents or friends from school (which had already gotten awkward 20 minutes in), or she could sort through the old Alchemical merch she had gathered today. She chose the last option. She pulled a slightly crumpled zip-lock bag out of her school bag, and opened it up on her desk. There was very little free merchandise left after 2 weeks that could easily be taken: the only artefacts today were a set of old business cards, a stationary holder left at the library, and the strange headband from earlier.

Tessa put the the cards in the recycling and the holder on her desk, but paused at the headdress. She carefully ran her fingers over the fabric, gently tugging in places to examine its durability. It was surprisingly similar to its magical, now unobtainable counterpart. Tessa might have confused them for one and the same, if not for the faint colourful shimmer of the golden segments, which suggested a plastic base coated with a thick glossy paint. It wouldn't hurt just to see how it looked, would it? She gazed over to the very back of her open closet, to the old fake plastic dresses and gowns from her time as a small child, waiting for the dream to occur, now relegated to gathering dust, too many memories contained within to give them away. Her eyes were pulled back to the large headboard mirror that took up the majority of her desk. A moment of curiosity was quelled as she stood up, raised the headdress over her head, and slotted it into place.

Just as the edges of the band were over her temples, a flash of bright kaleidoscopic lights filled her vision. The girl gasped and stepped back, eyes shut tightly as a whirlwind of power engulfed her. The winds of energy screeched like tortured souls as they swirled around her head. No transformation sequence had ever been recorded to feel like this before, scathing and relentless. Was this some kind of dream? Was this some sort of dreadful monster attack, tearing right through the barrier and into her home? Was the world going to end? Those were the thoughts that circulated in her head as the world roared around her. She crouched down on her knees, and begged for it to end with every quivering breath.

Over a full minute had passed, when the screaming winds went quiet. Tessa hesitantly opened her eyes, to find herself in a shocking white void. The deafening silence left her alone, with only her heartbeat and breathing to console her. A few cracks appearing in the void, revealing a bright, pastel pink beyond the quiet. As the cracks grew, the scenery was revealed to still be her own bedroom, untouched by the hurricane that had surrounded her. Eventually, the blazing white had crumbled away, to reveal her panting, terrified reflection in the mirror, in her complete old uniform, tears running down her cheeks, and a golden glimmer in her eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, onto the second chapter! This is really fun to write, but is it OK if I keep updating on Mondays? It just sets up a good deadline for me.


	3. A New Transformation

Tessa remained still for about a minute. Her heart pounded as the impossibility of the situation caught up with her. This couldn't be real, there was no way this could be happening. The Founder has never given some powers back, why would they start now, of all times? Of all people, even? She didn't deserve a second chance, not after what she did! _Never_ after what she did!

Her thoughts were drawn back to reality by a faint buzz of TV downstairs, as her parents debated some of the latest news. They were still alright, unknowing of their daughter's past few minutes. Tessa gradually slowed her breathing down to that of an exhausted jogger, and carefully observed her room. Her book bag was still patiently sat next to her bed, instead of cascading out the window from the hurricane. Her pens hadn't blown away into the walls from their haphazard placement on her desk. The Team Alchemical stationary holder glinted tentatively from it's position on the edge of her desk, unmoved and unyielding.

Nothing had been affected by the tidal wave of energy she had just felt. Not even a single fold on her bedding was out of place. The girl started to regain her composure, as she slumped into her chair and gradually regained her normal breathing. The puffy skirt and oversized bow of her new dress were exactly like that of her old uniform, and acted like an awkward extra cushion on her desk-chair. Tessa reached behind herself, grabbed her normal chair pillow, and after pondering for a moment, tossed it over her shoulder. It landed with a slight _poff_ on her bed.

She watched herself intently in the mirror, now in a harsh, authoritative posture. She silently interrogated her other self, looking for any form of incongruity with reality. This simply couldn't be real, as she tapped the arms of the chair with her gloved hands, folded her legs adorned with the patterned stocking and boots, and gazed at herself, with those very same cotton-candy eyes surrounding golden gleaming pupils. Eventually, there was no way to contest it. This ultimately had to be real. There was no getting out of this. Something, or maybe someone, had decided to give her a second chance.

Tessa stood up once more, shut her eyes tightly, and pulled the headdress off. Nothing happened. Not a single foreign sound echoed through her ears. She cautiously opened her eyes, to see her unsaturated pedestrian self, no more worse for wear, with brown hair, brown eyes, and no frilly dress in sight. She placed the headdress on her desk, and thought over what to do. She could go outside and fight monsters again, and aid the world that way again. Maybe she could go back to Future's Promise, and say hi to Undine...

"Hey Undine, I got my powers back, so our dead friends (who are dead _because of my actions_ ) mean nothing at all!"

That unpleasant, intrusion jolted into her head. As much as she wanted to deny, it wouldn't be possible to just go back in. She'd probably have to meet with the government to explain _yes my powers are back somehow via this trinket_ and not expect them to take it away to examine it, and then there would be talking with their manager again, who would probably be beside himself with confusion, to explain to the betrayed public who have lost so many so soon that this was somehow possible, and then...

She'd have to talk to Undine again.

Undine, who's caring and quietly determined nature probably found her another team already, with new friends and new manager contracts that would be torn up like spider webs in their current state. Tessa would have to go up and convince her to either let her join them, which would definitely mess up their team structure, or leave them behind and reform with her. It would just say... That nothing was wrong with it. That their teammates weren't beaten into pulp against the concrete by that bloody deer. That those deaths had no meaning, almost that they weren't there at all, and that the world is completely unchanged without Sally, Sylvia, and Gwen. That nothing mattered, and she should join up again with her, because apparently nothing was wrong. It would just be a form of terrible guilt-tripping, and Tessa bet that Undine, the supportive, soft-hearted soul would drop everything and come back with her, not because she wanted to, but because she basically had to, to avoid any uncomfortable abnormality that would hang on every day like a ratty woollen shawl. Is that she would really want, or even need?

There was no way that would work whatsoever, so it would have to be scrapped. Then, another, more promising thought occurred: " _Couldn't you do it on your own?_ " 

Tessa contemplated the possibility of remaining quiet, just beating up monsters and not talking to anyone about this discovery. Sure it would definitely be hard (her mind drifted over to Rue, who had fallen asleep in her packed lunch yesterday and squashed her sandwiches), and she'd need to be really careful not to run into anyone, but it might be good, something interesting in a new lifetime of standardised boredom at school. She was already having trouble adjusting to her normal sleep schedule, and often found herself awake late into the night. It would probably not do too much harm, and she could actually  _do_ something that wasn't just living, something that helped people, just like she used to.

Tessa opened the drawer on her desk, and rummaged around for her old strategy journal and town map, and unfolded the latter. The charted area, newly printed from 3 months ago, showed off the locations of the other magical girl teams. Team Alchemical had covered a relatively large patrol path compared to most (from a combination of team size, power capability, and Sylvia's requests), but the were also mostly central, flanked by other large teams around the outside, forming a ring which was rarely penetrated. Tessa knew it would be hard for the outside teams to break old habits and cover the area, but she would need to avoid them to ensure no exposure, particularly Team Forte, which travelled with a cameraman on nearly every single patrol. Undine would also be a consideration, as she appeared to be mostly winging it throughout the area across buildings on her water jets, and she was possibly tagging along with Heartful Punch, who roamed throughout the city with no clear path due to her above-par sensory abilities. However, from previous recordings, she seemed to be staying close to the other side of this area, where more monsters tended to be found, being closer to the edge of the city.

This would leave Tessa wandering on foot throughout a more centralised segment of the city, having to avoid Undine, Team Forte, Team Blitz, and a non-thematic duo, the last two groups she hadn't really encountered before on previous patrols. Aside from them, as well as the few and far between solos with highly-visible powers, she would probably be fine as a lone patrol, wandering through the streets, detecting nearby monsters with her relatively weak sensing, and evading detection from others, she should be relatively fine.

She set her alarm for 9:50 PM, and willed herself into a nap. It would be tough, but possibly rewarding, and she would need to be as refreshed as possible for this to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I'm sorry this one's a bit late. I got up too late and had to do some other stuff first. Hope this chapter's still good though!


	4. Suiting Up

The alarm sounded 5 minutes before the usual call. It was silenced in a second, before a gentle set of footsteps pattered down the stairs. Most of the population had gotten used to the common noises of distant monster battles and the regular announcements, and would sleep right through them, undisturbed, unless the battle broke into their own homes. Tessa knew her parents were part of those who could sleep through almost anything, sometimes including their own alarm clocks.

Tessa quietly closed and re-locked the front door, and pulled out the headdress. The golden segments reflected the light of the streetlamps spotted around the terraced area. She looked around, before taking off towards a nearby alley. The shadier spot would prevent her being spotted by civilians from the windows during the transformation, as well as being a fair distance from both Undine's house, and the cafe that used to be her team's main transforming ground.

She waited in the small niche, constantly watching for any other magical girls looking for a good place to transform. The most she saw was a small glimpse of what was probably Heartful Punch in the far distance, already transformed and leaping over the city. That would be something Tessa could not afford to do, but it was definitely something she missed about being a magical girl, the feeling of being able to rush over the rooftops like a comet, the wind struggling to keep up with her, herself finally able to join her friends in this sort of wondrous surge of power. It had been ages before she finally got her dream, and she had been waiting for so long as all her friends were moving away, that she had almost given up hope.

But now 3 of them were gone, and she had gone back to Easttown...

"Attention all citizens. The time is now 9:55 PM. Please make sure you are back inside your homes, with all doors and windows locked." Tessa's train of thought was cut short by the announcement coming from the speakers dotted around the city. It was almost like her first night again, trying out the full capabilities of her new powers for the first time. But this time, she reminded herself, she'd need to do it completely alone, stay out of everyone's way, and live a seemingly normal life. If she did that, things might improve in her life. She'd have a responsibility to take care of, and . Maybe she could have a talk with Undine, see how she was really doing, and offer support that she had always given to her. Then maybe, after that, things would be better. Not completely fine, but better.

"Welp, you heard the lady," she exhaled to herself as she neatly slotted the headdress into place, silently cringing at the transformation sequence to come. The kaleidoscope returned, leaving her blind to the world as the screams rushed in. After the initial shock, the girl opened her eyes, daring to face the storm. The blinding white was still there, intimidating her to close her eyes and wait for the hell to end. Tessa stood tall for a few moments, before relenting, closing her eyes, and crouching down to the ground. The hailstorm continued on around her, oblivious.

When the winds let up again, the white expanse degraded at a slightly faster rate to that of the first time a few hours ago. She looked up to see the shimmering inner barrier creep over the town. Tessa must have missed the 10 PM announcement under the chaos. The barrier's colouration was rather odd tonight, a conglomeration of pastel pink, pale cream, and the common midnight purple. It was like a young girl's favourite fantasy, about to be invaded by nightmares and other terrors that would try and tear it all away. Tessa turned around and started wondering where to start looking. It was going to be an interesting new night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, thanks again for reading! This one's pretty short, but alright. Hopefully the next one will be longer. Seeya!


	5. Pianissimo

As the night sky rose over the sleeping city, monsters poured in from all sides like a tidal wave of darkness. The shadowy creatures split off in chunks and wandered deeper into the city, ready to tear their way into the homes of the citizens within.

A small spider-like monster crept around on its spindly little legs. It followed the rest of its small party of identical creatures, looking for a quiet place to start scratching away at the strange inner barrier. They past similar groups - some smaller, some larger, backed by stronger creatures - as they infested the city, trying to stay away from the flashing lights that signalled their enemies. As they walked, they didn't look behind them to notice a lone pink magical girl standing behind them, arm posed, hand outstretched, ready to fire.

"Bang."

With a single brilliant blast, half of the group had been vaporised. The other monsters in the group squeaked, and scuttled away, only for one of them to be crushed underfoot. The pastel pink magical girl leered over the remaining creatures, preparing another devastating shot. She appeared to be gliding over the ground itself, far outmatching them in speed. The last trio scurried away into the darkened alley, desperate for cover. The slowest one tried to hide behind a rubbish bin, but it was quickly crushed underfoot. The remaining couple carried on desperately, running as fast as their little legs could carry them. Unbeknownst they were no longer being pursued. The girl merely waved her hand at them, and a laser pierced through the two.

As their bodies dissipated into shadows, Tessa looked behind her before moving on. The night had just started, and there were already monster swarms creeping into the less busy areas. Hopefully the other teams weren't suffering from this slight overload. She turned back around, and sped off back to the area they had come from, gently hovering over the ground. At this rate, there wouldn't be much of a break between fights. However, just as she turned the corner to their perceived origin point, she was met with a surprise. Team Forte, all 4 members and their cameraman, were right at the edge of the alley, looking over the remains from another slew of creatures, these looking softer than those she fought. Tessa hid behind the corner and craned an ear over to their conversation. They weren't coming over here, were they?

"Man, these chumps really are getting tougher," An exhausted Forte Drums whined as her drum-set faded away, already tired. "Usually these big ones only take a couple of verses, now we're practically writing whole songs for them! I can barely feel my wrists!" She limply flailed her palms to emphasise this fact.

"I told you not to go all out with those solos," Forte Keys chided gently. "Just try and stick to more of a regular beat to underline our attacks. That tends to keep them occupied."

" _I know_ , but I only thought this guy would've taken a short beat-down!" Drums groaned.

"Calm down, Debbi," Their leader (Roni, right?) interrupted. "We've still got a long night to get through. Make sure to pace yourself next time."

An odd pause occurred in the conversation. Tessa carefully peeked over the corner, to see their red member (Forte Bass, according to a half-remembered poster) gesturing vaguely deeper into the darkened alley. Tessa spun right back around and crept closer to the wall. Looking around, there weren't any good horizontal escape points for this situation. There were two paths from here: a path to the right that was in Forte's field of view, and the alley to the left, which she knew from her monster hunting lead to a dead end,deep within the main housing estate. There was another option, however, but it was probably going to be risky.

 

" _Roni_ , why do you keep letting Gail boss you around like this?!" Debbi winged as she slumped forwards through the diversion. "Undine or HP or whoever probably dealt with those butt-heckers."

"Well, it's better to be safe than sorry," Roni remarked. "Besides, Team Alchemical's path doesn't normally intersect with ours. It'd be best just to go and check."

Forte Bass and Forte Keys nodded in unison, as the cameraman followed silently. This footage wasn't really that good, but those smaller monsters would probably make a decent show, and any surprise attacks would be good footage for the Daylight Update, Twilight Spotlight, and the several adverts they had picked up. As such, it was often best to keep rolling with so much footage needed, even if most of it would be filler.

They turned the corner, to see faint shadowy remains of the more arachnid monsters across the ground, relatively old at this point.

"Hmm, I guess that cinches it-OH HEY!" Debbi murmured, looking up for a moment, only to see a faint glint of pink ribbon go over the rooftops. Her teammates turned around in shock, confused.

"What? What did you see?" Roni looked up nervously, forming her guitar.

"A bit of something really light pink and shiny, like a ribbon! It was right up there!" Debbi pointed up to the rooftops, which had a similar colour to that which was described. "They're aren't any active girls with that sort of thing, right?"

"The same colour as the gutters?" Forte Keys looked a little dishevelled as she peered up at the sky. "Hmm, it might've been Heartful Punch, but she doesn't really come around this spot that often, considering how isolated it is from monsters."

"What, no! It was a darker pastel and more sparkly! And it didn't have that weird heartsy-effect!"

"... That doesn't really sound that much different from the barrier." Roni replied.

"That's it! I'm gonna get a closer look!"

With that, she swished her arms to her sides, as her drum set formed in light in front of her. She jumped into the air, and started beating her drums at rapid fire speed. With each strike, musical notes burst from the instrument, propelling her in midair. She quickly gained height as her teammates questioned her motives, and the cameraman recorded her ascent. As soon as she was level with the rooftop, she let off one final beat and leapt forward. She landed well enough, and looked forward to find...

Nothing. Nope, nothing resembling that faint bit of ribbon could be seen. Off in the distance, a few other magical girls were leaping over the rooftops, contrasting against the playfully serene background. Heartful Punch was rather far away in the distance, but her scarf was too distinctive and light to be what she saw.

"Debbi, did you find anything?" Roni asked. Debbi jumped as her teammates clambered up a nearby ladder that had been just around the corner. Keys and Bass followed her, and looked around curiously.

"No, it's gone!" Debbi squealed. "It was right over here!"

"Calm down, Debs," Roni came over and put a hand on Debbi's shoulder. "It was probably just another magical girl. Gail, didn't you say there was a shy newbie who just got to our school a couple weeks ago?"

Gail nodded solemnly.

"Right? It was probably her first night out, and she just got startled when you started yelling."

"Yeah, but that girl has light grey hair, not light pink!" Debbi retorted, agitated. "She's in a bunch of my classes, and from what I've heard, she still hasn't started doing rounds around here."

"Hmm, in that case, I don't really know what it could be," Roni took a step away from Debbi, closer to the ladder. The rest of the team seemed equally confounded.

"Maybe it was that weird familiar that's been showing up around the city?" Forte Keys looked up at the dark sky in thought. "I've heard that it might be some sort of golden cat-creature, but maybe it reflected the pink in the barrier? That could be it."

"Yeah, but in that case, it's probably already gone," Debbi sighed dejectedly. "Isn't it supposed to lead girls to bigger monsters and other magical girls in danger? Did we just miss it and there's someone out there needs our help?!"

"Judging by its description from other students, it would have stayed to lead us in that case," Keys replied, letting the rest of the team go down the ladder first. "Maybe it was just passing over to make sure everyone's alright? We'll know if something's going wrong if we see it again."

"Ok, fine," Debbi stated as she started descending on the ladder. She winced as she grasped the ladder; it really wasn't a good idea to do that solo after a hefty battle.

"You need to sit out of the next battle?" Keys quipped.

" _Maybe..._ "

"That's fine, besides, the camera bloke was saying that he finally got some high-tier footage from that solo. We needed some of more footage of you alone for that one toothpaste ad."

"Right, remind me again why we took up that one?"

"Haven't a clue. Guess people need classy teeth."

 

Finally, they were gone. Tessa listened as their footsteps faded into the distance, before peeking out from behind the conveniently coloured steeple. It had felt like hours had passed during that conversation. She'd need to be more covert if she wanted to continue this, considering she was almost spotted by that cameraman who would look over the footage later. She turned around and carefully inspected the horizon. The solos were sweeping over the buildings without a moment to spare, all focused on other monster trails. It was probably going to be a good night. She turned back around... to see another magical girl on the rooftop behind her. Before she could call out or react, she quickly fled the scene, with nary a trace to follow.

_Shit._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew, this one was a toughie, partially because I did a ton of it last night, partially because it feels a bit unnatural to call Forte Keys by her MG name all the time. Maybe if her name is revealed I'll change some of the constant 'Keys' to her first name? Aw well. It was still pretty fun to write. Seeya!


	6. Bruising

_Shit._

_Shit shit shit shit shit._

_Another magical girl has looked at me for long enough to identify me, and definitely knows who I am. I am doomed. I am **absolutely** doomed._

Those were the thoughts circling around in Tessa's head as she carefully, non-magically clambered over the rooftops. There had to have been some sign of that magical girl somewhere, she'd just have to find it. She still vaporised any monsters that came her way, and thankfully she didn't encounter any other magical girls, but she couldn't find a single flicker of bright light or a image of a sigal imprinted into the ground anywhere. This girl didn't have a single trace to follow! It was crazy!

"Attention all magical girls..."

Oh _no_...

"The time is now 2AM. The inner barrier will deactivate shortly. Please make sure the streets are clear of monsters, and take care on your way home."

Tessa stayed there, momentarily, as the childish dreamscape faded away to reveal ordinary brown and grey, trying to calculate the distance she had taken in the search for this other girl. She was worn out, on top of a building, approximately 3 stories high in the air, where she could see her house on the other side of the city, just another building in the built-up housing estate. It would take about 10 minutes without powers, and then she'd probably take an hour to get there on foot, given the distance, possibly extending if any other magical girls were around. All in all, getting there was going to be dreadful.

At approximately 3:24 AM, the door to the Quinn residence quietly opened and shut. A desaturated girl dragged herself into the house, a childish trinket clutched in hand, and clambered up the stairs as quietly as she could. Not a single other soul stirred in the house. Tessa opened her bedroom door, and got ready for bed as best she could. As she changed into her comfy pink pyjamas, she partially recalled the conversation she overheard while trying to get back home: Team Blitz were arguing over the validity of Forte Drums' insistence on seeing some sort of familiar. It was surprising how fast word got around those parts. The entire school would probably know  tomorrow. Welp, she'd messed up. _Time to try and be more careful,_ a thought popped into her head. She silently agreed to it as she returned to her bed, reset her alarm, and went back to sleep.

The alarm broke the silence like a jackhammer to the face. Tessa reflexively smashed it onto snooze, and sat up. She still felt exhausted. Had to have gotten some sleep, but she supposed it was probably not enough. She had to work on optimising her route as well now.

"Morning, darling!" Her mother called from the kitchen. "I'm making breakfast!"

"Coming!" Tessa called back. She got out of her room, slumped down the stairs, and got into the kitchen. Her father smiled warmly at her from the dinner table, while her mother was busy making breakfast. She yawned as she got into her familiar old chair. Everything was as it should have been.

"How are you, sleepyhead?" her dad asked as he ruffled her hair.

"Fine, Dad," Tessa laughed along as her mother served breakfast. It was her favourite again, bacon and omelettes. Awesome.

"Did you stay up all night studying?" Her mother asked, looking at her daughters face with a moment of concern. Tessa froze.

"Y-Yeah, there's a test coming in English in a few days, so I just brushed up on the material a bit." She stammered out.

"Well, that's all well and good... but make sure you get some proper sleep tomorrow. You've got some pretty big bags under your eyes. "

"W-What?!" Tessa squeaked.

"They'll probably disappear soon, but just make sure you get some rest," her father joined in to the conversation. "Those sorts of bags don't come about from just a few hours."

"...Right."

"Are you sure you're feeling alright for school today?" He continued. "You can always stay home if you're not feeling up for it."

"No, no, I'll be fine," Tessa sent a reassuring smile towards her parents. "I'm feeling alright now, but I'll make sure to have a good rest tonight. The test's not for a few days, anyway."

"Good."

With that word from her dad, the family finally started eating breakfast. From then on it was a relatively quiet event, with few attempts at small talk attempted. Surprisingly normal, even from the old mornings. It was actually very refreshing.

 

"By the founder, what _are_ these?"

Tessa stared at herself in the mirror as she took in the sudden change. Two faintly dark splotches spilled out from under her eyes. It didn't so much look as though she had been studying, it was more as though she had been crying her eyes out all night. No wonder her parents were worried. She rubbed the skin around them, to find it felt relatively normal, no sign of excess wear-and tear from tears. Had she had some kind of nightmare? Nothing notable from last night came to mind. She doubted she even dreamed, so that couldn't be it. She pulled out her make up, and applied some concealer under her eyes. After a few moments, it looked a bit more like she was just studying late. It would hold for today, but she'd probably need to take a rest this night, just to make sure her parents didn't panic. She grabbed her bag and coat, and sprinted down the stairs, where she met her father, getting ready for work.

"Hey, Tessa?" He said as he tightened his favourite tie: black with thin gold and pink stripes.

"Yeah Dad?"

"You know...  You can tell us if anything's troubling you, right?" A worried look crossed his face.

"Yep! I know!"

"That's good."

With that final word, they left for their busy days ahead. Tessa looked back at her dad as he walked off in the other direction, before hurrying off towards her train.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm probably going to need to change updates to fortnights rather than every week. Things have gotten busy over here. I'm sorry about the wait on this one. I hope you still enjoy it!


End file.
